CIAL Centro de Linguas Lisbon

Learn Portuguese in Lisbon, Portugal

CIAL Lisbon is located in a 1910’s classified building in the centre of Lisbon, near Saldanha Square. The school offers high quality year round Portuguese courses in all levels, in small groups or in tailor made programs. There are also several options for accommodation and a comprehensive schedule of free afternoon/evening activities. Whether you need to learn Portuguese for academic or professional reasons, need to prepare for the official Portuguese language exams, or simply because you like Portuguese and Portugal, CIAL is the best choice for your language immersion in Lisbon!

CIAL welcomes students from over 60 nationalities every year, giving the school a truly international atmosphere. Our friendly teachers and staff will make you feel at home in Lisbon during your Portuguese course.

CIAL holds the major national and international accreditations, and aims at offering students an unforgettable Portuguese language immersion experience in Lisbon.

Programmes offered

General Portuguese Courses

Portuguese group courses with 15 or 25 lessons per week, with starting dates for A1/beginners every 2 weeks and continuous intake for A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2 level students. Our Portuguese language courses are progressive from the starting dates. Groups have a maximum of 8 participants so that monitoring and assessment are continuous and personalised. Special programs at Easter and Christmas. Individual lessons and combination of Group + Individual are also possible.

Business Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese and African Portuguese

Tailor made programs. Specific materials and experienced teachers of Brazilian and African origin or background. Students will not only learn the characteristics of the chosen variant, but will also get information on the specific social and economic traits of the countries where Portuguese is spoken.

Portuguese + Surf

Follow your Portuguese language course in the mornings and pair it with surf lessons in the afternoon in the best beaches around Lisbon. Transportation, insurance and equipment included.Portuguese + VolunteeringCombine your Portuguese language course with volunteer work in the afternoon in the Lisbon area.

Portuguese + Professional Internships

After your Portuguese course, join an unpaid professional internship in a company in or around Lisbon. Availability in several professional areas.

Teacher Training Courses

Course for native and non-native teachers of Portuguese to foreigners in public or private institutions in or outside Portugal.Erasmus+ Courses Intensive and extensive courses for Erasmus or other academic programs participants. Courses start at the beginning of each semester.

Contact

"I would definitely recommend CIAL and will return soon, I hope. You successfully mix learning with fun – which is so important."

Ian McKelvy - UK

Accommodation

Homestay

Shared Apartment

Student Residence

Our services extend beyond the classroom, and CIAL’s accommodations will be your home away from home during your Portuguese language course in Lisbon. Choose from one of our options during your Portuguese course or let us know your preferences.

Local area

Lisbon is Europe's second-oldest capital (after Athens), and one of the world's great historical cities. A friendly city with a cosmopolitan population, welcoming to all visitors, making it the ideal place for your Portuguese language stay.

With a mild climate it´s an ideal year-round destination to study Portuguese with a wide variety of landscapes and heritage, as well as one of the most vibrant nightlives in Europe and a surprisingly large variety of gastronomic options.

Take advantage of CIAL’s activity program, which is free for our Portuguese language students, and we will take you to the main monuments and museums in the city. Afternoon and evening outings, Saturday morning walks and typical dinners will make you an honorary ‘lisboeta’ during your stay in Lisbon.

Lisbon is officially Western Europe's least expensive capital, with easy access to Oporto, approx. 300 km to the North, and Faro, 300 Km to the South in the Algarve. You can easily get to know the whole country during your Portuguese language course at CIAL. Did you know you can take lessons in both cities?

Exam options

At CIAL Lisbon you can prepare for the official exams of Portuguese as a Foreign Language. The CAPLE exams can be taken in Lisbon University. There are exams in 5 different levels: CIPLE, DEPLE, DIPLE, DAPLE, DUPLE. Exams take place in May, July and November of each year.

Preparation is done in individual lessons, with specific contents, working in the skills students need to improve for a successful exam. These preparation lessons are often done in combination with Group course in the morning.

Our students have a high success rate in the CAPLE exams.

Additional information

With more than 40 years of experience teaching Portuguese as a foreign language, CIAL was the first school in Portugal to have a year round offer of courses in all levels. We keep on working to ensure that CIAL maintains its international reputation as a high quality and hospitable Portuguese language school.

Either in Lisbon or Faro, students will find a truly international atmosphere with over 1200 students from more than 60 different countries per year. The age of CIAL students ranges from 18 to 80+, the motivation to learn Portuguese varies as widely as the nationalities, from leisure to exam preparation or career progression.

CIAL offers high quality teaching, combining quality, flexibility and friendliness. We believe our responsibilities are not confined to the four walls of the classroom: the aim is to provide students with a full Portuguese immersion cultural experience through our comprehensive activity program and carefully selected accommodation options.

Members of CIAL’s teaching team have been involved in producing teaching materials for more than 30 years. These are published and are the leading teaching materials for the Portuguese language worldwide.

Want to find out more about this school?

To find out more about this school or to book a course, contact the School today.